The Governor of Delta State and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) vice-presidential candidate, Ifeanyi Okowa on Friday, asserted that considering the anguish befalling the nation, experienced candidates must be elected to save the country come 2023 general elections.
Denoting the country as being sabotaged, Okowa, asserted that the dilemma faced by the country would subjugate Buhari’s successor if he happens to lack experience.
He further stated that for the country to survive the crisis, the next president should be able to salvage what’s left of the nation
Okowa, the Delta state governor, spoke at an occasion organized by Green Assembly Initiative to commemorate the 2022 International Youths Day in Abuja.
He began by saying, ‘The way we look at what is going on today in Nigeria, there are loads of problems. And if we do not elect the right person, we’ll find ourselves getting somebody who will get on seat and stays confused on that seat because the problems will overwhelm him because he will not know how to start.’
‘Nigeria’s issues are not about communication. It is not about power because all those things are there. It is not easy to govern in this nation, where the rule of law is taken for granted because institutions are already working.’
‘When you work in a country like Nigeria and other West African countries where the issues are different and require a lot of deep thoughts; requires a lot of positive experience that can truly enable you to govern and to be able to bring everybody to reason on the table and be inclusive on the governance process and in the policy-making process.’
‘Not too many people have such experiences. I believe that the Nigeria of today is too fractured. There are so many contending voices. People are speaking in different directions. Our oneness is being threatened. Why? Not because of the north or south, Muslims and Christians, but because there’s frustration everywhere, there’s poverty everywhere. We don’t seem to have the answers because everything just appears to be going downhill.’
‘And then the issue of Social Security is no longer there. The security in the land is worsening, our economy is in terrible shape. We cannot continue in that state. We must prioritize our priorities. Furthermore, we must continue to look at the right things, what we ought to do.’
Okowa slammed the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), for not embracing state police despite the specter of insecurity in the country.
Okowa lambasted President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), for his defiance towards the adoption of state police amidst the security crisis in the country
‘When it comes to security demand. You’re going to hear various voices, even the governors are crying. And they have begun to equip themselves with weapons, even unlawfully.’
‘So the right thing is to ensure that the states are able to have their own police where they are officially equipped. And then they can go out in support of whatever the federal government police are doing to secure the land.’
Okowa expressed sympathy to the youths for the challenging situations they currently face in the country.
‘There are barriers everywhere in our lives, we cannot continue to frustrate the youths. So, we need to begin a consensus together. That is what Atiku Abubakar stands for.’
‘That was Nigeria today we do not have the depth of knowledge, the only man who seems to have that depth of knowledge to take us out of where we are is Atiku Abubakar.’
The Chairman, Green Assembly Initiative, Duke Alamboye bemoaned that youths have dealt with the dilemma of insecurity and dilapidated infrastructure including other day-to-day challenges, over the years.